Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-09-13

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

A friend of yours is thinking about applying for the same course that you did at university. He/She has asked for your advice about studying this subject. Write a letter to your friend. In your letter

• give details of the course you took at the university
• explain why you recommend the university
• give some advice about how to apply

You do NOT need to write any addresses.

Begin your letter as follows:

Dear .................. ,

Student answer (Band 6.5)

Dear John,

I am pleased to hear that you are going to take the geomatic course from the same university, which I have finished it last year. It is a great course for your career.

This course is a part of the civil engineering field. It includes theory and practical classes. In addition, you will learn different types of surveying methods and their applications in real world.

In this course, pratical knowledge is key. Therefore, I would recommend this university because they have enough facility to fulfill the need for practical session. Sometimes, universities are lack of instruments and they try to skip the practical classes.

There are some requirements for this course. Such as, your previous education is in Civil engineeering or related to the field. You can check all eligibility criterias on the university website before you apply for this course.

Overall, I feel that, you will more enjoy this course, because you are good at study.

Kind regards,

James

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.0

The candidate has successfully addressed all three bullet points of the prompt. First, details of the course are given, noting that it is part of civil engineering and includes both theory and practical classes. Second, the recommendation for the university is explained by highlighting that they have sufficient facilities for practical sessions compared to other institutions. Third, advice regarding the application process is provided, advising the friend to check eligibility criteria on the website and pointing out the educational background requirements. The tone is appropriate for a letter to a friend, and all parts of the task are adequately covered and extended, fully meeting the requirements at this level.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The letter is organised into clear, distinct paragraphs, each focusing on a specific aspect of the prompt, which helps maintain a logical flow throughout. Cohesive devices such as 'In addition', 'Therefore', and 'Overall' are used to connect ideas, although some transitions feel slightly mechanical or repetitive in structure. Referencing is generally clear, with pronouns like 'which' and 'they' correctly pointing back to preceding nouns. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate the introduction, course details, university recommendation, application advice, and closing, ensuring a clear progression of ideas from start to finish.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The vocabulary used is adequate for the task, with domain-specific terms such as 'geomatic course', 'civil engineering', 'surveying methods', and 'eligibility criteria'. However, there are some noticeable word choice and collocation inaccuracies, such as writing 'take the geomatic course from' instead of 'take the geomatics course at', and 'universities are lack of instruments' rather than 'universities lack instruments'. Additionally, 'pratical' contains a spelling error. While the candidate attempts some less common vocabulary items, occasional slips prevent the score from reaching a higher band level, though communication is never impeded.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The student demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, utilizing relative clauses ('which I have finished it last year') and conditional-like structures ('Sometimes, universities are lack of instruments and they try to skip...'). However, there are several grammatical errors and awkward structures throughout the text. For instance, 'which I have finished it last year' contains a redundant pronoun ('it'). Other errors include 'you will more enjoy this course, because you are good at study' instead of 'studying'. Punctuation is generally acceptable, but frequent minor grammatical inaccuracies keep the text at this band level.

See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.

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